Most people have heard of Google, but did you know that each summer Google selects rising college sophomores to immerse themselves in the Google way of life for a week? My path to the BOLD Immersion Program for Freshmen was far from conventional. I was told to apply by a senior mentor at school, who made me promise that I would research the company and send in an application. To do my research, I actually had to “Google” Google! Soon thereafter, I decided to apply, but with Google being so popular and me having little-to-no experience with computer science, I did not expect my interest to be reciprocated.

To my surprise, I was accepted into the program! Immediately I became nervous. What did I expect from a week at the center of the Internet world? How could I prepare for something like this? What would the other participants be like? I began to try and guess answers to my own questions. I decided I would have to wear a suit and tie, pretend to be well versed on all things computer science, be able to analyze Google stock trends, and memorize the biographies of Larry and Sergey.

Of course, all of my assumptions were false. BOLD Immersion was about exposing students to a talented and diverse community, learning about the technology industry from a non-technical point of view, and growing my skills. There was also a case study, and after being briefed each group set out to invent a marketing campaign. A few days later, we presented our work to a panel of judges.

What most impressed me at Google was the quality of the people. It took a short conversation with any one of my fellow participants to realize that he or she was talented and intelligent. And the Google employees were a more experienced version of our group – incredibly genuine, outlandishly charismatic, and encouragingly creative. Though I have always heard people say it’s important to love what you do, seldom have I seen this in action. The people I met at Google truly love their jobs; Google fosters a certain atmosphere that transforms a “job” into a “calling,” and your “coworkers” into “friends.”

I learned so much about who I am. I learned how to communicate effectively and navigate through a cloud of unknowns to answer a question or solve a problem. I learned how to accept and decline propositions, all the while maintaining respect and order. Most importantly, I learned how to be an effective member of any organization: be that my athletic team, the clubs that I am a part of at school, or the workforce of which I will soon be a full time member.

Google is a unique company because I see it not as a technology company, but as a people company that just happens to focus on technology. I left Google after a week with more knowledge than I could learn at many summer programs. The fellow Immersion participants became friends who I now contact whenever I am close to their schools or hometowns. Though there was a case study competition, I am more than content with the knowledge, the bonds, and the experience and I consider myself and every group winners.

I hope future college freshmen apply for this program. Participants will learn so much about Google and themselves, and will meet an amazing group of people. My one piece of advice: please be yourself because it's your uniqueness that can help transform you into a potential Googler!

Interested in BOLD Immersion? Applications will be available here in March 2013.

We're pleased to announce that we’re accepting applications for CodeF, TechAbility and Top Black Talent, which are all part of Google’s diversity talent programs in the UK and Europe. These programs are designed to provide career insights and mentorship for undergraduate and postgraduate students from underrepresented groups throughout the region.

Each program consists of an exclusive one-day career insight event with technical and business challenges, networking opportunities and an eight week, one-to-one mentoring relationship with a Googler. We’ll help you develop skills and industry knowledge for both technical and business careers at Google and beyond.

CodeF is for female computer scientists. Last chance to apply online for UK CodeF is October 28, 2012. We are accepting applications for Germany/Switzerland CodeF until November 11, 2012.

TechAbility is for disabled students interested in technical or business careers at Google. This effort is in partnership with EmployAbility. We’re currently accepting applications from across Europe until October 28, 2012.

Top Black Talent is a UK-based program for black students interested in technical or business careers at Google. This effort is in partnership with ACS and Rare. We’re accepting applications from now until November 14, 2012.

Google’s R&D Center in Israel recently co-sponsored Hackathon@Nazareth, a 48 hour long hackathon style event, partnering with Tzofen, a non-profit organization that aims to integrate the Israel-Arab community into the high-tech industry.

This Hackathon was the first of it's kind to be held in Northern Israel and the first one aimed to bring Israeli and Arab developers together. For the first time, we got to see the real talent behind the Israel-Arab tech community. Over 60 Arab Israeli computer science students, computer scientists and developers from schools such the Technion, Haifa University, Hebrew University and Tel Aviv University got together for 48 hours to turn ideas into reality. During the event, the students finally had the chance to turn their academic knowledge into innovative new software products, experience teamwork and create a new network with both Arab and Jewish experienced engineers.

Yossi Matias, Managing Director of Google's R&D Center, opened the event with a warm welcome speech to more than 80 attendees. Later on, the students pitched their ideas to the crowd and picked 14 ideas to work on during the event.

The positive energy and the mentors helped keep the participants coding all night long, which allowed them to build web and mobile applications based on their own ideas. Just before saying goodbye, all the teams presented their project demos before a panel of distinguished judges from the Israeli startup scene who gave them constructive feedback on their demo. Some of the more promising ones were theFridge, which allows roommates to maintain their household easily and efficiently and AroundRoid, an application that combines task management with location-based services.

Costa Touma, a full-time software engineer at Google who participated as a mentor at the event summed up this experience with the talented students: “The event's highlight was the team spirit. Everyone who participated gained something while at the same time helped put Nazareth on the tech map for a brief weekend.”

This event triggered a greater interest in planning more coding events in the region. Our Google developer communities will be planning more events in Nazareth in the future. For more information related to developers activities in Israel, check out our GDG ISRAEL G+ channel.

Time flies! It seems like just yesterday I attended the Intern Orientation on the first day of my internship, but now I feel as if I have been on my team for years. As my last day is approaching, I am starting to feel a pang of sadness to leave my team, but I am confident and grateful that I have gained in-depth knowledge and experience in just nine weeks of my internship. I also feel lucky to have my mentor who has been very supportive and I worked very closely with another intern and her mentor. It has been a great learning experience to work together as a team.

As an intern, I joined the Talent and Outreach Programs team that designs and delivers initiatives to attract a talented and diverse workforce and raise awareness of the Google employment brand. My intern project was to do research on and design initiatives for students with disabilities. I started by identifying and building relationships with organizations that support students with disabilities. Through these relationships, I then mapped out the talent market by school and major. Based on this research, I was able to plan and execute our first-ever ‘Google Diversity Workshop’ inviting 20+ students with disabilities to the Tokyo office! The students came from all over Japan.

As one of the main organizers of the event, I moderated the panel discussion where we featured two of our disabled Googlers. I also facilitated the group discussions where the participants built on their discussion and presentation skills. It was exciting to see the students enjoy and tackle the project, however, the highlight for me was the dedication of the Googlers who volunteered. This event was a success thanks to the 13 Googlers who came from various functions including HR, Sales, and Engineering. They trusted me and gave me helpful advice throughout the event. I saw firsthand how supportive and encouraging Googlers are.

During the last week of my internship, I gave a tech talk about my intern project. It was a great way for me to share what I had worked on over the summer. I hope Google will continue to hold events for students with disabilities, not only in Japan, but in other countries to raise awareness of the diverse Google culture. Also we would provide opportunities like group work and mingling with other disabled students and Googlers.

My experience at Google has made a big impact on me and has equipped me with the knowledge and skills to become a Googler. Now I am sad to leave, but I am ready for the next stage in my career and make a big impact to the world!

Christian, center, with fellow Googlers at the San Francisco Gay Pride Parade

It seems like just yesterday that I was wandering around the Googleplex as a wide-eyed freshman during my first internship at Google. Fast-forward four years and I’ve just finished up my fourth Google internship and am now starting my fifth year of college as a masters student. Along the way I've acquired some skills that have helped me tremendously when it comes to interviewing.

It goes without saying that technical abilities are extremely important. However, there are many other skills that can help you land that dream job. Before interviewing, I spent hours practicing interview questions to not only help my technical skills, but also my conversational skills. Remember, you only have one or two interviews to showcase yourself. You need to be able to make a lasting impression (in a good way of course)! Practicing communication skills is something many technically-oriented people overlook.

With that, my first tip is to take a break from the algorithms and data structures and practice talking about yourself. What makes you passionate about this position? What value would you bring to the company? Record yourself and watch it! You’ll probably notice many filler words such as “ums” and “uhs” that you can eliminate with a little bit of practice. Being aware of the image you're projecting is extremely important. It’s extremely uncomfortable to do, but it will show you where improvements can be made to the image you cast.

During the interview, try remembering you’re talking to another human being who’s most likely very friendly! Many people view the interview as an adversarial conversation, but treat it as the opposite. Every Google interview I’ve had was relaxed because I didn’t feel ashamed speaking my mind; this included asking for help when I got stuck. That’s completely fine to do! They’re looking to see how you think, not just getting the “correct” answer every time.

Additionally, always be sure to show your passion. It’s so much more engaging to have a discussion with someone who loves what they’re working on, rather than someone who is indifferent about their job. Always keep trying new things to find that passion inside you, and be sure to project it in your conversations!

Finally, make sure to always have questions for the interviewer at the end. It shows that you have an interest in the position and you have done your research. This is the time for you and the interviewer to find common interests and passions, which helps gauge your cultural fit in the company.

Introduction: We continue the My Summer @ Google series with a post from Nels, a junior at the University of Minnesota studying operations management, and information systems. Nels recently attended the first ever AdCamp, a four day program for rising juniors interested in advertising and sales.

During the school year I know I am going to have a good morning when I am able to get up and eat a bowl of Cheerios before class. Back in May, there was a Wednesday where I completely forgot my cereal, because I was too excited to even think. That morning I had gotten my acceptance email to be a part of Google’s AdCamp program. I may not have gotten my daily dose of oats, but that was the last thing on my mind.

A month prior to that Wednesday, a mentor of mine told me that I should apply for the AdCamp program. I had done a handful of work with Google products in the past, learned to love them, and wanted to get a chance to work with the company behind the magic. I was very quiet about applying, and didn’t mention it to anyone. I remember finally breaking the news to my parents the day I was accepted. I told them two things: “Mom, Dad, I am going to New York for a Google summer program, and I need to go fancy shirt shopping.”

AdCamp is a four-day program for rising juniors at Google’s New York office. Campers are able to learn from seasoned Googlers about the company’s products, and also about the company’s strategies for servicing their clients.

The camp was a healthy balance between work and play. The work happened during the day. Daily sessions were set up as fast paced discussions. We worked closely in teams, and had the opportunity to test our speaking skills in front of the large group. Between our sessions, we were able to explore the office and learn about the hidden perks of being at Google; it only took five minutes of wandering to realize how special Google is.

On the last day of AdCamp we had a case competition. The Googlers presented us with a live case that Google employees were working through. We used all of the tools that we learned at camp, and in under three hours, we created a presentation for a panel of judges. The competition was fierce but in the end our team put together a great presentation and had a lot of fun.

When we weren’t being students, we were tourists. Each night our program leaders would take us out to explore the city. We went on a double-decker bus tour through Times Square & Brooklyn, walked along The Highline park in the Meatpacking District, and went out for an authentic New York style Italian meal (which took a few weeks to fully digest!).

But my favorite part of the trip had to be the people that I met. All of the campers were from different places, and had different stories to tell. By the end of the trip we became a very tight-knit group. If I ever make my way out to either coast, I have a long list of new friends to visit.

The Googlers were also special. The little things were what stood out to me. Every employee was willing to help when I needed it, and they all walked around with a big smile. Our program leaders were amazing. I never felt like I had to impress them. They treated me like a friend instead of a prospect. I am not very emotional, but I gave out quite a few hugs at the end of the trip.

I left AdCamp with confidence that I could do anything. In four days I built up a wealth of knowledge that I am still tapping into today. AdCamp taught me the skills that I need to thrive in any fast paced environment. Lastly, I learned with a bit of teamwork and a bit of fun - anything can happen.

Interested in AdCamp? Applications will be available here in Spring 2013.

Let’s say you tend to chew this particular type of gum that you just can’t seem to resist. But have you ever thought about why this gum attracts so many consumers in the first place? What if you could figure out what makes this particular gum so popular that it makes people want to purchase it continuously and associate this brand of gum with happiness?

Implementing a new game-changing system to Google Japan Online Partnerships Group (OPG) is a project that was most definitely challenging but was a project I was able to accomplish in two months. By asking "would you recommend this product to a friend?”, we learn more about how AdSense is performing through our customers’ eyes.

As a member of the scalable team, my ultimate goal was to find a way to increase customer loyalty of the millions of Google AdSense users through online communication channels such as: Google+, newsletters, blogs, seminars, and webinars. I worked on a project designed to improve customer loyalty and while we may not find an immediate answer today or tomorrow, planning for the future and for the better of the company could only be experienced thanks to Google.

The excitement of being able to think and provide my own insight that could possibly be used in a global scale is definitely the experience of a lifetime. One of the most fun parts of being an intern on the Online Partnerships Group is the collaborative teamwork I was able to experience, the challenge my project provided me, and most importantly the friendliness of all Googlers. What I will never forget about this internship is the culture Google immersed me with. Despite the global impact Google has already created for the millions of people, its challenge and continuous motivation never ceases to excite me. From my mentors, managers, seminars, hangouts, to cafeterias- to be able to view and experience this strong network in such a short amount of time is just priceless.

One important thing that I observed while at Google that I will take with me back to school is that there's always room for improvement. I've seen teams here working at such a fast pace, and just when you think something is perfect, there is always room to make it better. For that, I must say, no wonder why there's always a new flavor of gum to chew!

We are getting ready to launch the 2013 Building Opportunities for Leadership and Development (BOLD) Internship application. The 11-week, paid summer internship is Google’s only non-technical, undergraduate internship program and offers participants the opportunity to make an impact in one of our business units. The experience also includes professional development opportunities, exposure to careers in the technology industry, mentorship support, social activities and more.

To better prepare interested applicants, the BOLD team will be hosting a Hangout on Air on Tuesday, October 16 at 4 PM EST/1 PM PDT from the Google Students page on Google+. We will answer questions about the application, the selection process and the various components of the internship.

You can submit your questions and vote for previous ones here or by using the hashtag #BOLDHangout on Google+ or Twitter. No worries if you can’t watch the Hangout live - we will upload the recording to the Google Students YouTube Channel.

During the last week of August 2012, Google hosted 235 students from 70 universities in 11 countries from all over the Middle East and North Africa for the second run of our Google Student Ambassador Program. With 160 more students than last year, the Google Student Ambassador (GSA) program tripled in size this year. Students came from far and wide to attend the training which took place in the busy grand city of Cairo, Egypt.

As soon as the GSAs arrived and despite their huge number, they became friends almost instantly. They had loads of fun together playing games, taking pictures, or just chilling on the famous Google-colored bean bags.

But it was not just fun and games that marked this summit: during their four day training in Egypt, 27 Googlers from around the globe joined in training and polishing those bright new talents. Interactive and informative sessions such as how to map your country, tips and tricks for webmasters, ways to collaborate with Google, how to join a GDG or GWIT were on the menu. Moreover, GSAs got a chance to develop their professional skill, boost their confidence and prepare for the job with our tailored soft skill workshops on everything from presentation and communication skills to planning powerful events and budget management skills.

Then on the glamorous night of August 30, we celebrated the graduation of those 235 bright stars at the majestic Cairo Citadel with a breathtaking view over Old Cairo.

On the fourth and last day of the GSA training marathon, the GSAs and Googlers alike
enjoyed a literally colorful morning at Fagnoon (crazy arts land) a very creative activity park in Giza. They went wild with color wars and mud fights. They also showed their artistic side with t-shirt printing, wood carving and clay molding.

By the end of the summit, the student ambassadors were well equipped with information necessary to hold events, transfer their knowledge of the Google products to their fellow students and represent Google at their university. They have also formed valuable friendships and various opportunities of collaboration among themselves.

You can take a look at more photos from the Summit in this album. We also encourage you to go and seek out the Google Student Ambassador at your university or apply to be an ambassador yourself. To find out more about the program, please visit our website.

Posted by Noha Salem, Google University Programs Specialist in the Middle East & North Africa

Introduction: Our interns explore new ideas, accelerate the launch of new product features, and are big contributors to Google. Technical interns are embedded in every major engineering team where their impact is unconstrained by titles. They truly “do cool things that matter” and we’re sharing their stories with you now. Today we're featuring Daniel Castro, a computer science student at Georgia Institute of Technology. This summer Daniel worked at our Mountain View headquarters as a Software Engineering Intern. He was also a part of last year’s Engineering Practicum Internship Program. Interested in a technical internship at Google? Applications for Engineering Practicum are due October 15th. Our other technical internships are posted at google.com/students/intern and we accept applications for those roles on a rolling basis.

What did you work on this summer? What was your internship project?
The goal of my project was to explore the different methods in which we could display 3D images on the web. This is why devices like the Nintendo 3DS have two cameras that are adjacent to each other. Transitioning from one camera angle to the other then creates the sensation that it is in three dimensions due to the change in perspective. A very similar effect can be created when you close one eye and quickly alternate to your other eye, while focusing on an object. (try winking with your left eye, then your right eye, and repeat this very quickly). I worked on a Chrome extension that would analyze if a website had any 3D images, and then modified how these images were displayed to create a 3D effect when the user hovered over the image.

What are the real-world applications and why is it important?
Over the past few years, various companies have released devices that can now easily capture 3D image pairs. These images are often displayed using specialized hardware that is not available to the consumer. The real world application of this project is to improve the user experience of viewing these images on the web. It is important to note that these images are becoming incredibly easy to obtain now that 3D cameras are integrated into devices that are used every day, like Nintendo 3DS, or the HTC EVO 3D. One of my goals was to help this community view the 3D images they take without the use of the specialized hardware. Often, these images are displayed using a wiggle effect which displays the left and the right image in quick succession in order to create the sensation that it is in 3D. However, this attempt is not smooth, and looks very flashy. It is often difficult to appreciate the three dimensionality without the flashiness, and this is why a lot of work went into analyzing how we could do this smoothly.

In what ways have you been able to innovate at Google? What makes working at Google unique for you?
My project dealt directly with analyzing stereoscopic image formats and the different methods for displaying these images. The unique thing about the project is that it is very exploratory. From Day 1 onward, I got to apply my own ideas and opinions to what I was working on. It wasn’t a cookie cut programming internship. It was an adventure of ideas and discussions that lead to stunningly creative results. I got to work with experts in the field of images and video, and their input was invaluable to the results of my internship.

What do you like most about your internship? Are there personal rewards from the work you do?
It started about 6 months ago, when I got my call from my internship host. My host looked over my resume and knew that I had a passion for images and video, and therefore put me on a project dealing with stereoscopic images. I’ve put so much more into this project because I love it, and that makes all the difference. My biggest personal reward here is knowledge and networking. I learned to be much more comfortable in image analysis and met teams who had a wealth of knowledge to share. I love that it is a project that I can hold dearly and say, I did that, that’s my work.

Overall, how do you feel about your time here at Google, and what do you see yourself doing next?
I’d truly love to stay but the time I spent at Google was invaluable to my professional and personal career. I look forward to graduating from Georgia Tech in the Spring, and continuing to pursue my PhD in Computer Vision in the Fall. If all goes well, I hope to come back to Google for quite a few more internships while I pursue my doctorate.

Do you have any advice for students who are interested in an internship at Google?
This is probably more general advice for Computer Science majors but here it goes. Don’t bet heavily on coding ability as your biggest skill. Programming is only the medium through which you will pursue what truly motivates you. Step one is to find that passion, and step two is to have the motivation to keep at the pursuit of your dreams. It isn’t about knowing each programming language in depth (although more power to you if you do), because alone that gets you nowhere. Inspire yourself to use your abilities to make a difference. And most importantly, make the pursuit of happiness be something on your resume, and not just that Will Smith movie we’ve all watched.

Entrepreneurship is at the heart of Google, tracing all the way back to the early days of the company when Larry and Sergey worked out of a garage in Menlo Park in 1998. Today, we have preserved much of the startup culture that gave birth to Google. In particular, Googlers have a strong entrepreneurial drive and many of them come from entrepreneurial backgrounds.

September 24 - 27, 2012 was Google For Entrepreneurs Week where we shared our love and and support of entrepreneurs around the globe. As part of this initiative, Google offices in 12 different countries engaged in community outreach with entrepreneurs in their area.

To support the next generation of entrepreneurs, we hosted a Youth Entrepreneurship Panel Discussion with 3 Googlers who have serial entrepreneurship experiences. Googlers Dave Brown, Neil Shankman, and Perihan Abou-Zeid spent an hour with us to discuss the ingredients of a successful startup and share their advice with other aspiring entrepreneurs.

In the first half of the discussion, we talked about getting started as an entrepreneur, financing options, and how to build a great team. In the second half, we took viewer questions from Twitter and Google+, using the hashtag #g4estudents. Students from all over the globe tuned in to watch the discussion. If you’ve ever dreamed of starting your own business, you won’t want to miss this video.

Google Map Maker allows you to add and update geographic information for millions of users to see in Google Maps and Google Earth. By sharing information about the places you know, like businesses in your town or places in your school campus, you can ensure that the map accurately reflects the world around you.

The Google Student Ambassador Program runs yearly and provides opportunity for students to act as liaisons between Google and their universities, enhance their professional development, leadership, and communication skills. The ambassadors learn about innovative Google products and programs, act as a campus contact for Google teams, help Google better understand each university’s culture, plan and host fun events on campus such as putting their universities on the map.

We are grateful for the dedicated efforts from our student ambassadors . More happy days as the ambassador class of 2013 continue to bring sub saharan African universities and their communities online!

Posted by Obum Ekeke, University Programs Manager, and Evans Arabu, Map Maker Community Team

Introduction: Over the summer we host a variety of programs and internships for technical and non-technical students. We’re relaunching the My Summer @ Google series to give you an inside look at each of these programs, hearing from the students themselves who participated. Today Bryan Dominguez, a current freshman at Cornell University, recaps Google’s BOLD Symposium for High School. BOLD Symposium is an enrichment program designed to provide high school seniors with valuable business skills before starting college.

When I found out that I was nominated to participate in Google’s BOLD Symposium, I was ecstatic. I had been interested in Google since visiting the company’s offices in Cambridge, MA with the LEAD Summer Business Institute at Tuck, so you can imagine how excited I was to travel to the office in New York City for BOLD Symposium.

I was the first student to arrive at Google on the morning of BOLD Symposium and I was immediately introduced to Demian Caponi, a current employee on the University Programs team and a Cornell alum. It was nice to see that although the Google staff and student body was so diverse, I could still find similarities that brought us together. During the program we did a resume workshop and were given the opportunity to network with Google employees. The excitement that these employees brought to the table truly set the atmosphere for the rest of the day. The wealth of knowledge that they shared with us was beyond anything I could ever illustrate in this blog.

It was all such an enriching experience that to choose one single aspect that I liked the most would belittle the greatness of everything I learned. However, the part that I remember the most would be the personal branding overview and workshop. I learned that personal branding is a part of who you are, like an invisible tag, listing everything you are made of. For me it has been a long time since someone had told me it's important to illustrate yourself in the eyes of others, the way you want to be seen. It is so important to understand, but also easily forgotten. The beauty is that the key to controlling it all comes with knowledge. My personal brand plays a key role in helping me shape the I, who hopes to one day positively impact the world. As I look on to my future at Cornell, I hope to use this new gained knowledge not only in my classroom, but in the new community I hope to surround myself with. It is my duty to act like a lighthouse to my community of equal minded minorities who seek growth, providing them with my little light of knowledge that may one day prove to be bigger than we all might have expected.

My experience at Google’s BOLD Symposium is one that I will never forget. The memory made and knowledge gained at the Symposium is truly one that has opened my eyes to a world that celebrates differences. The beauty of BOLD Symposium is that it places you outside your comfort zone in an environment where knowledge is waiting to be picked up in every corner. Symposium equips you with the tools to be a great leader as you head back to your communities or off to college. As I begin my freshman year at Cornell, I feel confident because I know I have created a personal brand that is true to who I am and I’m ready to put it to the test!

I am honored that the LEAD Program recognized my personal brand and give thanks to them nominating me to participate in the 2012 BOLD Symposium for High School, and thus allowing me to see Google as more than just a search engine but an ever revolutionizing company with endless possibilities to expand.

My most memorable moment of my summer was my first day at Google Japan during Noogler (new Googler) Orientation. There were a dozen people starting that day, and 8 of us were women! I was even more excited to find out that they were still in college, starting an engineering internship through the Google BOLD Internship program.

In 2010, I became actively involved with the Technovation Challenge, a mobile app development competition for high school girls. Technovation Challenge is a mentoring program and an opportunity for females to explore the world of engineering at a very young age by use of the Android App Inventor.

The biggest hurdle of the program was attracting mentors that were invaluable to the success of the program to connect with the high school girls. When I called out to females in technology, Women@Google had an overwhelming support for the program, bringing over a dozen mentors!

My summer at Google was filled with events that brought women together, from formal dinners to a casual breaks over ice cream, to share their experiences, and help one another. To have the opportunity to work at Google this summer, meant working at a company that supported in the cause to increase mentorship for those that were underrepresented in tech. I feel very fortunate to be able to spend my summer in an organization that celebrates diversity and inclusion and constantly encourages Googlers to support one another.

Over the last two months, I have had the opportunity to meet many successful female Googlers in all levels of the company. Each and every one of them, offered me career advice, and periodically checked in to see how my internship was going. As a Business Marketing Intern for the APAC Mobile Ads team, I constantly felt a strong support network, and was provided with many opportunities to challenge myself. In just eight weeks, I was given the support and resources to build two presentation narratives, publish an info-sheet, and create an internal webpage.

I have had an unforgettable summer experience, and want to thank all the Googlers, both men and women, that have mentored me during my internship. Thank you to my manager Taka-san, Mobile Ads Team, APAC Marketing, and the Boston Forum Team - Yayoi-san, Yuko-san, Jay-san and Brad-san. I have been fortunate to have amazing mentors in my life, and want to return the same to others. I hope that one day every female in every occupation will have a strong mentor that can support them to achieve anything that they desire and work towards.

My summer is over at Google, but my hope to increase mentorship for those that are underserved has just begun.

Last week we held our fifth Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) Faculty Summit in London, bringing together 94 of EMEA’s foremost computer science academics from 65 universities representing 25 countries, together with more than 60 Googlers.

This year’s jam-packed agenda included a welcome reception at the Science Museum (plus a tour of the special exhibition: “Codebreaker - Alan Turing’s life and legacy”), a keynote on “Research at Google” by Alfred Spector, Vice President of Research and Special Initiatives and a welcome address by Nelson Mattos, Vice President of Engineering and Products in EMEA, covering Google’s engineering activity and recent innovations in the region.

The Faculty Summit is a chance for us to meet with academics in Computer Science and other areas to discuss the latest exciting developments in research and education, and to explore ways in which we can collaborate via our our University Relations programs.

The two and a half day program consisted of tech talks, break out sessions, a panel on online education, and demos. The program covered a variety of computer science topics including Infrastructure, Cloud Computing Applications, Information Retrieval, Machine Translation, Audio/Video, Machine Learning, User Interface, e-Commerce, Digital Humanities, Social Media, and Privacy. For example, Ed H. Chi summarized how researchers use data analysis to understand the ways users share content with their audiences using the Circle feature in Google+. Jens Riegelsberger summarized how UI design and user experience research is essential to creating a seamless experience on Google Maps. John Wilkes discussed some of the research challenges - and opportunities - associated with building, managing, and using computer systems at massive scale. Breakout sessions ranged from technical follow-ups on the talk topics to discussing ways to increase the presence of women in computer science.

We also held one-on-one sessions where academics and Googlers could meet privately and discuss topics of personal interest, such as how to develop a compelling research award proposal, how to apply for a sabbatical at Google or how to gain Google support for a conference in a particular research area.

The Summit provides a great opportunity to build and strengthen research and academic collaborations. Our hope is to drive research and education forward by fostering mutually beneficial relationships with our academic colleagues and their universities.

We were thrilled to invite 14 top Computer Science students who attend universities in Japan, Korea, and South East Asia to the 2012 Google Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship Retreat. From September 3rd - 5th, the Scholars gathered in the Singapore office for three days of workshops, technical talks, a poster session, panel discussion, a hackathon and lots of networking opportunities. Three scholars, including Mizuki Sakamoto, Kimisha Piyush Mody and Nonhlanhla Alice Ntuli, shared their excitement.

Congratulations! Let’s get to know you...

Mizuki: My name is Mizuki Sakamoto, and I am a 1st year masters student at Waseda University in Japan. I'm studying Computer Science and Engineering specializing in Human Computer Interaction.

Alice: Hola....My name is Nhlanhla Alice Ntuli, a masters student from South Africa studying Computer Science and Engineering in Konkuk University, South Korea.

What was the highlight for you? What skills did you gain?

Mizuki: I gained the skill of communicating my ideas. Through the hackathon project where I worked with two other scholars from different countries, I realized that the more ideas we exchange, the more advanced our application's concept becomes. Developing an application with female students from different countries was exciting for me!

Kimisha: The hackathon with my team members from Korea and Japan was the highlight! Our task was to collaborate across different time zones, manage time and work together within a tight deadline to deliver an effective presentation. It has definitely honed my speaking and presentation skills. We also had a resume and interview skills workshop, which gave us several tips on writing an effective resume and giving the perfect technical interview.

Alice: I especially had a lot of fun meeting women like me from different countries. Everyone was full of energy and enthusiastic, being surrounded by them really uplifted my spirit and the level of confidence.

How do you plan on applying these learnings/skills to what you do back at school?

Mizuki: The skill of explaining your ideas is important in academic research. I’m planning to create a lot of opportunities to talk with other people to advance this skill.

Kimisha: Working together with team members, thinking on my feet and resolving issues are certain skills that come only with practice. The resume and interview skills workshop will be particularly useful for various technical job interviews.

Alice: I was really impressed with the work that my roommate has been doing and we decided to collaborate on a research paper since our two research areas complement each other. The retreat opened my eyes to many possibilities. I understand the beauty of collaboration with others, all thanks to the Hackathon. My professional network has expanded, I intend to apply collaboration skills I learned to all my future projects.

What are your next steps?

Mizuki: I will continue my gamification research. I would like to develop a value-based gamification framework to help people think positively.

Kimisha: To work in a dynamic environment and contribute to solving practical problems! I wish to work for a few years in the Software Industry.

Alice: I hope to get an internship with Google as a Software Engineer. I just started working on my thesis trying to finalize the topic, I am so full of ideas that came to me during the retreat, hopefully I will settle on one topic soon.

What is your advice for prospective Anita Borg scholars?

Mizuki: Go where your passion takes you and believe in your own possibilities!

Kimisha: Don’t feel shy to showcase your capabilities. All you need is a great passion for Computer Science and a medium to showcase it! The Anita Borg Scholarship will no doubt be your best platform to do so.

Alice: Be sure to highlight what makes you unique. I cannot count the benefits of being a Google scholar. It's simply a life changing experience, I invite you to try it.

The Olympics haven’t been the only exciting event taking place in London this summer. From August 12th - 18th, 23 students descended on the Google London office for a jam-packed week of teaching, hacking, career development, networking and social activities.

The goal of Android Camp is to provide first and second year undergraduate students with exciting and interactive courses in Android development to build development competencies in the Android platform, culminating in application development at the end of the program.

Recently we sat down with one of the happy Campers, Catalina Predoi who studies Computer Science at the University of Edinburgh, to hear what she thought of the program...

Tell us about your experience at Android Camp?
Android Camp was the most fun and intense week of my life. In just a few days I’ve learned a lot about the lifecycle of an app, basic methods, data retrieval, how the xml and java files are binded, etc. and together with my team developed an App from scratch. The best part is that I made new friends that are as passionate about Android as I am.

What made you decide to apply for Android Camp?
I had tried to learn Android development by myself before because I wanted to be able to make my own apps, but without anyone to point me in the right direction I kept getting stuck before I would even really begin. Of course, when I heard about Android Camp I thought it would be a great way to finally get started. And what do you know...I was right!

What was the highlight of Camp for you?
Wow, this is a really tough one. It’s very hard to pick a highlight, between all the surprises, everything I’ve learned, all the fun I had... I guess that for me the highlight would be the last day when we got to see everyone’s presentations, their ideas, and how they brought them to life using what we had learned. Not to mention that the presentations themselves were very entertaining.

What are the next steps for you?
My team and I have decided to continue developing Quertie (our app) in our free time and put it up on Google Play as soon as possible. And personally, I already have my eye on a few open source apps which I want to contribute to.

What advice would you give to people considering applying to Android Camp next year?
Don’t just consider it, do it! Really, apply. You can only benefit from the experience and you’ll have an amazing time. The application process is pretty straightforward, the only thing that I imagine might be holding some of you back is that you don’t want to approach your professor asking for a reference letter. However, think of it this way: sooner or later you will have to ask for one. It’s common practice. And if it won’t be for Android Camp then it will be for some other program or internship you’ll be applying to.

After applying for Android Camp, Catalina went on to apply for the Engineering Trainee Summer Program, where she was accepted and is currently interning in the Google London office!If you want to follow in the footsteps of Catalina keep an eye on the Google Students page for potential programs or opportunities.Posted by Jenny McColl and Allison Roarty, Talent and Outreach Programs

This week the annual Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing is taking place in Baltimore, Maryland. We're look forward to celebrating that strides that women have made in the world of computing and to talk about the bright future that lies ahead. For those of you who will be attending the conference, we hope you’ll stop by our booth (#1306) for some fun swag and great conversation with Googlers and fellow Grace Hopper attendees. We’ll also be posting updates to a Grace Hopper circle on Google+, so +1 this post to be added to this circle and receive updates. You can also share posts on Google+ or Twitter during the week using the hashtags #ghc12 and #googleatghc.

We also have a few Googlers who will be speaking during some of the sessions, so we welcome you to come by and listen in: